Five Minutes of Heaven (2009)

The story of former UVF member Alistair Little. Twenty-five years after Little killed Joe Griffen's brother, the media arrange an auspicious meeting between the two.

Director:

Oliver Hirschbiegel

Writer:

Guy Hibbert (screenplay)

Stars:

Liam Neeson, James Nesbitt, Anamaria Marinca

8 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mark Ryder	...	Young Alistair - 1975 (as Mark Davison)
Diarmuid Noyes	...	Andy - 1975
Niamh Cusack	...	Alistair's Mum - 1975
Mathew McElhinney	...	Stuart - 1975
Conor MacNeill	...	Dave - 1975
Paul Garrett	...	Alistair's Dad - 1975
Kevin O'Neill	...	Young Joe - 1975
Gerard Jordan	...	Jim - 1975
Paula McFetridge	...	Joe's Mum - 1975
Gerry Doherty	...	Joe's Dad - 1975
Luke O'Reilly	...	Brother Dan - 1975
Luke McEvoy	...	Brother John - 1975
Aoibheann Biddle	...	Sister 1 - 1975
Ruth Matthewson	...	Sister 2 - 1975
Carol Moore	...	Susan - 1975

Storyline

In February, 1975, in Northern Ireland, seventeen year-old UVF member Alistair Little kills the catholic Jimmy Griffin in his house in Lurgan in front of his younger brother Joe Griffin. Alistair is arrested and imprisoned for twelve years while Joe is blamed by his mother for not saving his brother. Thirty-three years later, a TV promotes the meeting of Alistair and Joe in a house in River Finn, expecting the truth and the reconciliation of the murderer and the victim who actually seeks five minutes of heaven.

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Plot Keywords:

reconciliation | vengeance | title spoken by character | cell phone | ireland | 

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Taglines:

To face the future, they must face the past.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Australia] Official site [Ireland]

Country:

UK Ireland

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 2009 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

Cinco minutos de gloria

Filming Locations:

Glenarm Castle, Ballymena, Co Antrim, Northern Ireland

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,364, 21 August 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$13,217, 30 August 2009

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Films, Big Fish Films, Bórd Scannán na hÉireann

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White (archive footage)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Liam Neeson and James Nesbitt were born in the same town, Ballymena in Northern Ireland.

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Goofs

When Joe and Vika are smoking on the balcony, the scene cuts to show Alistair arriving. The camera shows the house from the front, and the balcony where Joe and Vika are smoking is visible, but they are not there, nor is Alistair's car shown coming up the driveway.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Young Alistair - 1975: [narrating] For me to talk about the man I have become, you need to know about the man I was. I was 14 when I joined the Tartan gangs, and I was 15 when I joined the UVF, the Ulster Volunteer Force. At that time, don't forget, there were riots on the streets every week; petrol bombs everyday, and that was just in our town. When you got home and switched on the TV, you could see what was happening in every other town as well, and it was like we were under siege. Fathers and brothers ...

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Connections

References The Way of the Dragon (1972)

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Soundtracks

Birth
Written and performed by David Holmes
Courtesy of Mercury Records Limited
Under license from Universal Music Operations
Published by Universal/Island Music LImited

User Reviews

It Lives Long After

I really had a hard time knowing what to make of this film. The opening is striking as a group of young Irish men plot the killing of another because you have to do something in the hornet's nest they are living in. Not only do they accomplish the killing, they destroy the life of a boy, the victim's brother, who witnessed everything. The most unfortunate thing is that this boy is blamed by his mother for not doing something to stop things. It then moves many years in the future. The two men are to meet on a kind of talk show. Incredible tension builds as the killer (played by Liam Neeson) gives some testimony and awaits the man whose life he pretty much destroyed. The outstanding thing about this film that there are no sides. As Neeson's character said, at the time he was proud. He went to bars and was hailed as a hero. He also knows that there is no forgiveness, no sorrow that can change anything. We await their confrontation. I will not comment on the events that follow. Suffice it to say that they are extremely intense and, I thought, satisfying.